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May 2002 | Volume 59 | Number 8
Beyond Instructional Leadership    Pages 92-93

How Healthy Is My School's Culture?

In his article, “The Culture Builder” (p. 6), Roland Barth points out that every school has a distinct culture and that culture has tremendous influence on life and learning in the school. As a group, discuss the following questions about your school's culture:

• Do we encourage both new and experienced teachers to express their views in faculty meetings?
• Do experienced teachers offer active and willing support to new teachers?
• Do high-achieving students have to struggle against peer attitudes that working hard in school isn't “cool”?
• Do parents actively participate in school volunteer opportunities, including serving on advisory task forces?

 

Assess how your school rates on Saphier and King's norms of healthy culture, which Barth mentions: collegiality, experimentation, high expectations, trust and confidence, tangible support, reaching out to the knowledge bases, appreciation and recognition, caring celebration and humor, involvement in decision making, protection of what's important, traditions, and honest and open communication. Do you feel that your school falls short in any of these areas? If so, discuss what steps you can take to improve the culture of your school.

How Important Are Relationships?

In “The Change Leader” (p. 16), Michael Fullan asserts that

The single factor common to successful change is that relationships improve. If relationships improve, schools get better. If relationships remain the same or get worse, ground is lost.

 

Do you agree? Think about success-ful change efforts in which you have been involved. Were improved relationships among staff members and students an important part of the change? Have you seen a reform effort succeed in spite of static or crumbling relationships?

Daniel A. Heller (“The Power of Gentleness,” p. 76) and Kay Pippin Uchiyama and Shelby Anne Wolf (“The Best Way to Lead Them,” p. 80) also discuss the importance of relationships in instructional leadership—expressed by Heller as “kindness and compassion” and by Uchiyama and Wolf as “heart” and “intentionality.” Do you believe that these qualities are more important in education than in other fields? In your personal experience, how have these qualities contributed to strong leadership?

Successful leaders have learned to view their organizations' environment in a holistic way. This wide-angle view is what the concept of school culture offers principals and other leaders. It gives them a broader framework for understanding difficult problems and complex relationships within the school. By deepening their understanding of school culture, these leaders will be better equipped to shape the values, beliefs, and attitudes necessary to promote a stable and nurturing learning environment.

Consider several recent studies. Leslie J. Fyans, Jr. and Martin L. Maehr (1990) looked at the effects of five dimensions of school culture: academic challenges, comparative achievement, recognition for achievement, school community, and perception of school goals. In a survey of 16,310 fourth-, sixth-, eighth-, and tenth-grade students from 820 public schools in Illinois, they found support for the proposition that students are more motivated to learn in schools with strong cultures.